Kyōkuma Clan
The Kyōkuma clan (京熊族, Kyōkuma Ichizoku) is one of the six Noble clans of , as well as one of the strongest clans of the village. All members born into this clan possess the potential to unlock the Giyagan, a that gives them the ability to see through objects and even the ability to manipulate or control emotions of individuals, among other things. They are famously known for their legendary tracking skills as well as their mastery in the art of tantojutsu. Background The Kyōkuma clan are first descendants of the and the mysterious celestial Akaihada Tribe. As a result they are also distant cousins of the , , , and . They are considered to be one of, if not currently, the most powerful clan in Hoshigakure. Kaede Kyōkuma is believed to be the clan's original founder. It is unknown exactly when the clan was formed, however, it is believed that the clan started long before the . The Kyōkuma clan are most notable for their physical traits, most people are intimidated by their striking reddish-brown skin and varying shades of green hair. Their chakra reserves are massive similar to if not greater than the Senju and Uzumaki clans, much like the Uzumaki they share an immense life force. They have been shown to be very intelligent, as well as possessing an unyielding amount of willpower. They are infamously known to be very prideful of themselves and their heritage, they tend to believe that no clan could compare to them. This trait is commonly seen as negative to other clans, however, it's deeply rooted in the idea that throughout the clan's history they have been made fun of or feared because of their outward appearance. Anyone who is not native to the clan who has had a chance to work alongside them will vouch for how loyal and selfless they are in battle. Due to their dōjutsu, the Giyagan, the clan has shown incredible empathic capabilities towards others. They also have a deep rooted rivalry with the Hyūga clan. Politics The Kyōkuma clan is considered as an independent clan separate from Hoshigakure's government, however, when political matters affect the village or country as a whole then that's when the Kyōkuma clan becomes involved. The Kyōkuma have a rocky relationship with the current Bear Daimyo, mainly due to the fact that the Daimyo feel as though it's dangerous to allow the clan to go on unchecked. The clan has adopted a similar societal system of patriarchy among its people, in which the first born males of each family are eligible to participate in a ceremony called Kisoku (規則, Lit Meaning: Rule). In this ceremony depending on how many eligible candidates apply, they are required to battle in an all-out fight of submission to see who is left standing. In rare cases of it turning into a draw the Kyōkuma clan elders would then hold a special anonymous election to decide the next head of the clan. As for the women of the clan, even if they were not shinobi they still had to be trained in tantojutsu. Which was necessary to protect the home if need be. Ideally, Kyōkuma women would be skilled at managing property, keeping records, dealing with financial matters, educating the children, and caring for elderly parents or in-laws that may be living under her roof. These responsibilities put them on equal standing to their male counterparts. Traditions The Kyōkuma clan are proud warriors who value traditions, so much so that they created Seijuku (成熟, Lit Meaning: Maturity) a brutal coming of age ceremony held for the children of the clan. Once the children turn eight years old, they must go through two trials to determine their placement amongst the clan. The first trial sees the children survive alone for three days in the Forest of Lost Souls, the children must protect themselves from dangerous enlarged carnivorous insects as well as each other while also foraging for resources. Legend has it that any children that died during the first trial, their souls become one with the forest unable to move on. Clan Elders view this as a form of honor because even in death they are able to give back to the land. Some even say that outsiders who try to invade Hoshigakure who wind up trapped within the Devil’s Ravine could hear the cries and screams of the children who died in the Forest of Lost Souls. If the children survive then they may move on to the second trial which is a regular tournament. The children were forced to fight to the death or to the point of permanent disability. Children who possess Museigen Taisha (無制限代謝, Lit Meaning: Limitless Renewal) are required to drink a special serum called Yokusei (抑制, Lit Meaning: Suppression), the ingredients of which are kept secret, it temporarily suppresses the child’s ability to heal. Those who succeed become members of the Main Branch, while those who fail are sent to the Side Branch. Members of the Main Branch are tattooed on both arms with an inch wide black ring around the forearm to signify their status in the clan, while the Side Branch members are branded with a seal called Kēji (ケージ, Lit Meaning: Caged). The purpose of the Kēji Seal was to permanently suppressed the victim’s ability to mold chakra or even use their dōjutsu. This was the highest form of shame possible, the seal would normally be placed directly on the victim’s naval, because of this the suicide rate among the Side Branch is abnormally high. Children who refuse to participate in Seijuku are banished from the village but not before having the Kēji Seal placed on them. Women of the Kyōkuma clan take pride in their appearance, it is common to see them wear qipao-style blouse of varying designs and colors reminiscent of Chinese culture. They usually pair these flamboyant blouses with long flowing kimono skirts and traditional Japanese wooden sandals. Kyōkuma women were not allowed to wear heavy makeup or show too much skin — with their arms being the only exception. They believed this to be too distracting from the woman’s inner beauty. This rule is not enforced by men but instead by female Elders. While on missions, however, kunoichi are allowed to wear whatever they want. As for the men they typically wore long-sleeved low cut short shirt kimonos of varying colors and designs. They usually paired these with long baggy pants and sabatons. Kyōkuma men are not permitted to cover up their skin, but just like the women, in the field they were allowed to wear anything they wanted. Chakra Reserves and Physical Prowess As descendants of both the Ōtsutsuki Clan and the Akaiuōkā Tribe, the Kyōkuma were bestowed tremendously potent chakra and high levels of chakra reserves having inherited Saisho Ōtsutsuki’s “body” and Princess Kiyomi’s “eyes”. Akin to their distant Uzumaki cousins, the Kyōkuma possess an incredibly strong life force, which allows them to age much slower and have slightly longer lifespans. Members of this clan have been shown to be very intelligent and have amazing analytical skills. It’s common to see various members specialize in tantojutsu, favoring kunai and other shorter bladed weapons over swords. Ninjutsu and Taijutsu are staples among the clan, however, what they lack in overall Genjutsu skill they make up for in resistance. Determination is a key part of their personality, which could allow them to keep on fighting for over a day before extreme exhaustion kicks in. Other Abilities Just about every member of the Kyōkuma Clan are born with the Giyagan (ギヤ眼, Lit Meaning: Gear Eye), however, this unique dōjutsu didn’t originate with the clan. Instead it was first seen within the ancient celestial tribe known as the Akaiuōkā. Both appearance and abilities vary greatly among the Akaiuōkā and their descendents, for starters the Giyagan found in the celestial tribe has only three black dots vaguely similar to tomoe aligned along a thin black circle around the pupil. Unlike the Akaiuōkā, the Kyōkuma’s Giyagan instead has an intricate gear vector-like shape. This obscure dōjutsu grants the user full control over an individual's emotional state among other things. Mud Release (泥遁, Deiton) is an advanced nature transformation made famous by the Kyōkuma Clan, it’s a combination of , and . However, it is widely believed that there is another version of this where it’s considered a , it’s believed to be consisting of only Earth Release and Water Release. This special Kekkei Tōta has the ability to absorb an individual's chakra akin to it’s counterpart, it’s also been shown that users could heal individuals by encasing them in mud. Chikara and his mother, Kimi Kyōkuma, has shown the able to be the only one's to heal individuals with their chakra infused mud. Mud Release has been shown to be highly resistant to both Fire and Water Release, however, Lightning Release is still shown to be stronger against it. In addition to the persecution experienced by most kekkei genkai users, Kyōkuma clan members are stuck with a stigma of being dirty and unclean because their abilities tends to leave their hands constantly caked with mud, despite them being very clean people. Currently only five percent of members are shown to be gifted with an incredibly powerful and potent healing factor called Museigen Taisha found commonly among members of the Akaiuōkā Tribe. Similar to ’s iconic regeneration abilities, Museigen Taisha enables the user to heal most injuries in moments, reconstructing the damaged tissues making up the human body to its uninjured state. This technique has a continuous, automatic effect that will heal any damage that the user sustains instantly without the need to make hand seals or even a conscious effort to activate the healing process. This regenerative ability is so potent that even dozens of puncture wounds mixed with various injuries inflicted by outside forces were healed within mere moments. Museigen Taisha also allows the user to regenerate fully functional limbs within the course of three days, members have shown to regrow parts of their brains, although they’re not able to reconstruct their bodies from nothing. If a limb was severed and not completely damaged then the user is able to reattach the limb and heal within moments. Lastly, as the muscle fibers repair itself they become twice as strong as they were before, this essentially helps protects the user from consistent piercing damage, although this effect is present for twenty-four hours.